Emma Willis and Dermot O'Leary stepped in to host the BRITs when Michael Buble dropped out to care for his son

As well as being at the helm of the music industry’s biggest awards show, her CV also includes presenting duties on The Voice UK, Big Brother, Celebrity Big Brother and, starting this summer, The Voice Kids. Phew!

Thanks to being in a room full of drunken and sometimes less-than-enthusiastic musicians, it’s known as one of the hardest gigs in the biz, where even pros can flop (Frank Skinner, anyone?).

Not that you’d know it from Emma’s cool on-screen demeanour.

“The thought of [presenting the Brits] really intimidated me! I’ve been that person on the floor who’s having a drink and not really paying attention,” she says.

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Emma is married to Busted star Matt Willis and the couple have three children together

“It has never been a dream of mine. It’s always been something other people do. For years I [went backstage] for MTV. Because that’s been my history with the Brits, I’ve always felt like I would be on the outskirts.”

This self-deprecating statement sums up Emma. When Fabulous meets with her at a London restaurant for her post-shoot interview, it’s like catching up with an old friend.

She’s warm and without an ounce of ego. On top of that, she has a wicked, seriously infectious laugh and swears like a trooper.

“I always feel like an imposter. But it’s good because it means you’re still learning,” she says.

Fabulous

Emma hesitated over whether to try for a third child but decided she didn't want to get to 45 and regret not having done it

Emma’s also skilled at the art of juggling work and home. Married to Busted star Matt, 33, the couple have Isabelle, seven, Ace, five, and Trixie Grace, 10 months.

It’s understandable that Emma initially had reservations about trying for baby number three, having just reclaimed some “me time” with both kids in school.

“I felt like I hadn’t focused on me for about seven years! But on the flip side I was like: ‘Why the f**k am I even worrying about having “me” back if that’s what we want to do?’ I took away the selfish thoughts as I knew I didn’t want to get to 45 and regret not trying for a third.”

And so Emma introduced her bump with her Fabulous cover shoot at the very start of 2016 and Trixie Grace arrived last May.

Fabulous

Emma says the kids, house and washing all come before her - but she wouldn't have it any other way

While she struggles to find time for herself, the mum of three insists she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I think you always have your identity, but you forget about yourself. Everything else is a priority and you become last on the list. The kids, house and washing all come before me, and if there’s any time left in the day then I get it. But it’s all totally worth it. It’s my choice.”

It sounds as if she appreciates every moment of family life.

“Matt and I, at least once a week, look at each other and go: ‘F**king hell, can you believe this is our life? Look at our great family and brilliant garden.’ We’ve come from families who have worked their arses off from morning to night to put food on the table. We’re very appreciative of the luck we’ve had.”

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Emma supported husband Matt through a drink and drug addiction

Perhaps even more so because getting to this point hasn’t been smooth sailing, either personally or professionally.

The couple wed in 2008 and Matt beat his demons once and for all following the birth of their daughter Isabelle in 2009.

It’s not a subject Emma wants to discuss today, but she does reveal that her husband has shown her it’s possible to overcome any problem. “Every single day I’m so proud of him,” she says softly.

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Emma has been inspired by her husband's strength in overcoming his addictions

“He’s the biggest inspiration, absolutely. It’s phenomenal that people who have an addiction in them can fight it every day.”

In 2005, the year she met Matt, Emma faced her own battle when after three years at MTV (where she met her future hubby while interviewing Busted), the channel decided not to renew her contract.

Her first job in TV had come to an end overnight, leaving her questioning whether she was really cut out for it.

“I felt like there was a long period where I just couldn’t get a job. You start to panic. My biggest obstacle was always me – my insecurities and uncertainty about myself,” she sighs.

“I’d done three years where I felt like everyone had experience and I was winging it. Then suddenly I was out there on my own and I was like: ‘Should I continue trying to wing it or am I just a bit crap and shouldn’t bother?’”

Fabulous

Emma debated whether to quit presenting after MTV decided not to renew her contract in 2005

Thankfully for all of us, she did bother, after asking Matt and her friends for advice. “If I wasn’t very good then I wanted to know from the people I trusted and respected.

They all went: ‘F**king calm down and carry on!’ You have to work hard at it as you have every single door shut in your face.”

Her persistence and determination led to her co-presenting ITV2’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me out of Here Now! alongside Matt in 2007 (who was King of The Jungle the previous year) and joining George Lamb on Channel 4’s Big Brother’s Little Brother in 2010.

Three years of grafting on spin-off shows later and Emma was finally offered her first solo prime-time gig on Big Brother‘s main show when host Brian Dowling was axed.

Then in 2014, she took the helm on The Voice UK alongside Marvin Humes.

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When Emma got the call to present The Voice she was convinced they'd made a mistake

But don’t think these huge opportunities have changed Emma’s attitude to her on-screen abilities.

“With The Voice I was like [to my agent]: ‘They’ve called the wrong Emma! It must be someone who knows what they’re doing.’”

She’s certainly done her fair share of hard work to get to the top, having started as a model when she was 17, signing to Models 1 and landing campaigns with Gap, Gossard and Samsung. Nine years in the notoriously tough industry taught Emma how to deal with rejection.

“You go on 15 castings a day and book maybe two jobs a week. I had good training for not being the right girl for the job. I never took it personally. And now some people like what I do and others I annoy the s**t out of! I like to think I’m realistic. You can’t please everyone as they want different things.”

Emma also learned she wasn’t always the right fit when she was ordered by model bosses to lose weight.

“I got told from time to time [to lose weight], but I didn’t really listen. At that point I ate really badly. I didn’t know how to cook so had frozen chicken burgers every night.

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Monochrome magic

“When I was about 19, someone told me I needed to drop a bit of weight. I phoned my mum crying, then went home and ate a pie.

“It could have completely gone the other way, but I had the right people around me. You’re in a world that you’ve never been in before
so you need guidance. No one told me I had to be emaciated but I was always realistic with myself.”

It’s this strong-willed attitude that led to Emma’s iconic first Fabulous cover in 2012.

She posed in just trousers and braces six weeks after giving birth to Ace, and specifically requested that the pictures weren’t retouched.

As she takes a large mouthful of her steak and ale pie today, complete with dauphinoise potatoes, she reveals that extreme retouching is a big bugbear of hers.

“I do shoots for [television] and we send [the pictures] back, going: ‘You’ve made my face look like a doll. Put the lines back in my face – it’s
ridiculous! You’ve retouched my hair to make it look like a helmet – leave it alone.’

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Emma hates extreme retouching and makes sure photos of her are kept 'realistic'

“It’s crazy. Very rarely do [my team and I] get one where we say: ‘That’s a realistic picture.’
I remember seeing one with my arms looking very thin with no shape. I was like: ‘That looks like a doll’s arm. Get it back to normal!’”

For the record, the size-8 star looks incredible.

Emma turns up without a scrap of make-up, feeling reinvigorated after a kid-free lie in until 10am.

The night before she had a rare date night with Matt – they watched The Crown and Grey’s Anatomy before falling asleep on the sofa at 1am.

Even in bright restaurant lighting, any wrinkles are very hard to see and the TV host could easily pass for someone a decade younger, despite never having the help of a surgeon’s needle or scalpel.

She’s embracing her 40s, even while working in an industry known for ageism towards female presenters.

But as Emma points out, she’s joined by other women at the top of their game – including Claudia Winkleman, who’s 46, and Davina McCall, who’ll be 50 later this year.

“I feel like I’m surrounded by my peeps who are all in the same generation, which is lovely. I’ve been super-lucky, especially on The
Voice, as most of the heads are women.”

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Emma makes a real effort to promote a healthy body image with her children and never uses the word 'diet' in their house

“We don’t use the word ‘diets’ in our house and I never go: ‘Look at the lumps,’ or ‘Look at my legs.’ I say that to Matt, but never when the children are around.”

Despite her tender age, daughter Isabelle has become aware of the big wide world of social media, which means Emma is having to teach
her about the pros and cons of having an Instagram account.

“It terrifies me. We’re trying to teach Isabelle what it is, how it should be used, the dangers of it and the meanness that can come from
it. She’s young, but she’s aware, and I think as soon as kids are aware of stuff you need to start educating them.“

Emma is just as strict when it comes to her own account.

“I don’t want to make my Instagram a ‘Look at my perfect life,’ because it’s far from perfect. It’s bloody great, but it’s hard work. There’s a lot of pressure to create this perfect account.

“You have a responsibility to the people who follow you to be realistic and not paint a false picture of what your life is like. I would find it empowering to see an unpedicured foot – that’s reality.

Eyevine

In addition to her prime-time presenting gigs Emma also works on a Heart FM Sunday breakfast show with Stephen Mulhern

“Because I don’t put my kids on social media, I’m like: ‘Well, my life is my kids.’ If I’m not at work then what am I going to post? I’m being
a mum, doing the school run, shopping at Tesco. Who the hell wants to see that?”

It’s this normality that means they’ve been struggling to explain the whole concept of fame to their young brood.

“Isabelle’s school friends will say things like: ‘Your mummy and daddy are famous, that means you’re famous.’ And we say: ‘We’re not famous. Famous is the Queen or Justin Bieber – somebody who can go anywhere in the world and people will know who they are.’ We’re just normal people with extraordinary jobs.”

With three children under the age of seven, a husband (who Emma teases can sometimes feel like a “fourth child”), two regular prime-time presenting gigs plus a Heart FM Sunday breakfast show with Stephen Mulhern and two high-profile modelling gigs for Venus and Oral-B, it’s hard to imagine Emma finding time to post anything to her 580,000 followers.

The couple live in Hertfordshire and balance their childcare with some strategic planning and a lot of help from Emma’s mum and dad, nurse Cathy and former postman Steve, who are based in Birmingham.

Emma reveals she recently gave the grandparents a breather, only for three days of work to unexpectedly enter her diary.

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Emma replaced Brian Dowling on Big Brother and proved herself on live TV

With Matt on tour with Busted, she found herself juggling even more than usual.

“I honestly felt like I was going to have a breakdown. It was hard work!” she laughs.

“Weeks like that make you really appreciate the help you get from people. It’s f**king hectic but amazing, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. You take your hat off to any single parent out there doing that.”

All of which makes us wonder if there’s space in Emma’s diary for yet another high-profile gig…

She’s recently been linked to hosting legendary dating show Blind Date, which is being brought back by Channel 5.

“I haven’t heard anything about it,” she says, shaking her head.

“I love dating shows, but Blind Date is a classic and I’m like: ‘Don’t do it, don’t bring it back!’ Would I want to be the one who takes the reins of that show? There are certain things, like The Great British Bake Off, that you wouldn’t want to [take on]. Certain shows you have to go: ‘I want them to remain in my memory the way they were.’”